No. 11, 19 January 1993

RUSSIA



RUSSIAN GOVERNMENT ISSUES CAUTIOUS STATEMENT ON IRAQ. In response
to allied air strikes against Iraq carried out on 17 and 18 January,
the Russian Foreign Ministry issued a statement on 18 January
which said, "the key to normalizing the situation lies in Baghdad,
which did not heed numerous warnings." The statement pointed
out that "the solution lies in [Iraq's] full-scale fulfillment
of the UN Security Council resolutions." Sounding a note of dissent
about the operation, the Foreign Ministry statement said that
"our firm position is that reaction to the actions of Iraq must
be proportionate and proceed from agreed decisions." The statement
also called on a review of the situation by the UN Security Council,
Interfax reported on 18 January. Meanwhile, in an interview with
Interfax, the acting chief of the Russian Foreign Ministry's
Middle East Department, Viktor Gogitidze, sharply criticized
the fact that civilians suffered because of the strikes, which
he characterized as "counterproductive." Suzanne Crow

SOME RUSSIAN POLITICIANS CRITICAL OF RAIDS AGAINST IRAQ. Evgenii
Ambartsumov, Chairman of the Russian parliament's Committee on
International Affairs and Foreign Economic Ties, said that while
there was clear evidence of Iraq's violations of the UN Security
Council resolutions, "Russia must not stay indifferent to the
methods used to stop Iraqi action." He added: "I believe that
we must be interested not in the expansion of military operations
in the region, but in settling the conflict by peaceful, political
means." Sergei Stankevich, a top political adviser to Russian
President Yeltsin, said that attacks on targets in Iraq should
be undertaken only after additional UN authorization has been
obtained. Stankevich, in an interview with an RFE/RL correspondent
in Warsaw, added that the UN should more clearly define the methods
which can be used to enforce resolutions. More extreme reaction
was registered by Russia's ultra-right; Liberal Democracy Party
leader Vladimir Zhirinovsky announced that his party had formed
a detachment of Afghan war veterans to help Saddam Hussein. Suzanne
Crow

RUSSIAN WARSHIPS IN GULF NOT PART OF COALITION. Admiral Feliks
Gromov, the commander in chief of the Russian Navy, said on 18
January that the Russian warships in the Persian Gulf were performing
their own mission and were not subordinated to the multinational
forces in the region. As quoted by Interfax, Gromov said that
the two ships--a guided-missile destroyer and a tanker--were
in the Gulf to show Russia's support for the UN. sanctions against
Iraq. He said there were no Russian warships in the Adriatic
Sea near Yugoslavia. Doug Clarke

MOSCOW, KIEV DISCUSS BLACK SEA FLEET, CITIZENSHIP. Evgenii Pudovkin,
a member of the Committee on International Affairs and Foreign
Economic Relations in the Russian Supreme Soviet, told reporters
on 18 January that he will head a working group tasked with examining
the status of the Crimean port city of Sevastopol. According
to Interfax, Pudovkin stressed his belief that the Crimea (and
presumably Sevastopol in particular) should remain home to the
Russian Black Sea Fleet. According to the same Interfax report,
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told reporters
on 18 January that the Russian Foreign Ministry fully supports
conclusion of an agreement with Ukraine on dual citizenship,
which would presumably benefit principally Russians living in
the Crimea. He said that the Russian and Ukrainian presidents
had discussed the issue during their meeting on 15 January and
that both sides had recognized the need to resolve the problems.
Stephen Foye

RUSSIAN GOVERNMENT REVERSES PRICE CONTROLS DECREE. On 18 January,
Prime Minister Viktor Chernomyrdin signed a decree that effectively
reversed the 31 December resolution on price/profitability limits.
This was announced by Deputy Prime Minister Boris Fedorov at
a news conference reported by Russian and Western agencies. Fedorov
attributed the 31 December decree to a "bureaucratic slip-up"
and praised Chernomyrdin for his willingness to "change even
his own decisions if something has gone wrong." Fedorov noted
that he had been away from Moscow when the original decree was
signed. The new edict stipulates that prices charged by some
monopoly producers will be controlled, but that most prices will
be allowed to float freely. Keith Bush

HIGHER RUSSIAN FUEL PRICES. At the same news conference, Fedorov
said that Russia can liberalize its economy only if it brings
energy prices closer and closer to world levels, but he gave
no timetable for achieving parity with world prices. On 15 January,
Interfax had reported that draft presidential decrees envisaged
raising the price of coal by 80-100% and of gas by 150-270%.
The crucial price is that of oil. The present domestic price
of crude oil is thought to be around 5,000 rubles a ton, or less
than 10% of the world price at the current rate of exchange.
Keith Bush

RUSSIAN PRIVATIZATION IN 1993. The Russian deputy prime minister
in charge of privatization, Anatolii Chubais, told a conference
of chairmen of regional privatization committees on 18 January
that 1993 will be a decisive year for the privatization process,
Interfax reported. He warned that anti-government forces in the
parliament may "sharply aggravate" the political situation. Chubais
predicted that the "communist opposition" will try to grant priority,
rights, and benefits to the employees of privatized enterprises,
which would mean that "property is being confiscated from one
half of the population and handed over to the other." In such
a case, servicemen, pensioners, doctors, teachers, and others
would be swindled out of shares. Keith Bush

RUSSIAN FINANCE MINISTER CRITICIZES PENSION INCREASES. The Russian
Finance Minister, Vasilii Barchuk, criticized the decision announced
yesterday to almost double old age pensions from 1 February,
and claimed that parliament had not consulted his ministry before
passing the resolution, Interfax reported on 18 January. According
to Barchuk, the pension increase will lead to further increases
in wages and a total of 4.8 trillion rubles will be needed to
fund these measures. This would imply raising the planned budget
deficit for 1993 from 6 to 10% of the GNP. Barchuk also announced
that 350-400 billion rubles of extra credit will be granted to
industrial enterprises in 1993 "for special purposes" and "within
a "state assistance scheme." This would include measures such
as reducing VAT and profit tax. Sheila Marnie

ON THE FUTURE OF THE RUSSIAN CONGRESS. Russian parliamentary
speaker Ruslan Khasbulatov told Radio Rossii on 17 January that
all parliamentary deputies are convinced that the Congress of
People's Deputies has outlived its usefulness and that it must
be replaced by a professional parliament. At the same time, he
stated that the balance of power between democratic institutions
has already been established, and therefore he regards the upcoming
referendum as superfluous. Khasbulatov, an opponent of the creation
of a presidential republic, has sought to expand the power of
the parliament. Meanwhile, five liberal deputies have called
upon the Constitutional Court to examine article 104 of the present
Constitution which names the Congress as the supreme institution
of political power in Russia. Alexander Rahr

RUSSIAN MEDIA CHIEF SHRUGS OFF OPPOSITION THREATS. On 18 January,
the head of the Russian Federal Information Center, Mikhail Poltoranin,
rejected charges by Ruslan Khasbulatov and other politicians
that his center was set up to impose censorship. Poltoranin was
quoted by Reuters and other agencies as saying "if this center
tried to exert influence or introduce censorship it would be
a violation of the law on mass media and the mass media could
turn to the authorities to stop it." On 16 January, Khasbulatov
also hinted that the parliament could try to abolish the center
by refusing to allocate it money from the federal budget. In
response, Poltoranin said the parliament "has no right to make
any decision to close down the center." On 15 January, more than
one thousand activists of the communist "Labor Russia" group
picketed the Russian parliament building, demanding the abolition
of the Information Center and the allocation to communists more
broadcasting time on Russian TV, ITAR-TASS reported. Vera Tolz


AUSHEV NOMINATED FOR INGUSH PRESIDENCY. An extraordinary congress
of the peoples of Ingushetia in Nazran on 17 January decided
to create the post of president of Ingushetia and to hold the
election of the president on 24 January, the CIS media reported
on 18 January. The only candidate nominated was 38-year-old Major-
General Ruslan Aushev, the former interim head of the local administration
who resigned in December accusing Russia's temporary administration
of doing nothing to solve the North Ossetian- Ingush conflict.
Aushev has been compared with Dzhokhar Dudaev, the president
of Chechnya. The congress also decided that Ingushetia should
remain part of Russia and not merge with Chechnya, and that Ingushetia
should challenge the legality of the introduction of a state
of emergency in the international court and the Russian Constitutional
Court. One of Aushev's demands was that Russian troops be withdrawn
from Ingushetia. Ann Sheehy

HEARING ON NATIONAL SALVATION FRONT POSTPONED. The hearings concerning
the legality of President Yeltsin's October 1992 decree banning
the National Salvation Front opened in the Russian Constitutional
Court on 15 January, according to Russian TV. The hearing, however,
was postponed until February, because of the need to examine
a more recent decree issued by Yeltsin entitled "On Measures
for Strengthening Control over the Establishment and Activities
of Public Organizations," which in fact annulled the provisions
of his first decree Julia Wishnevsky

TRANSCAUCASIA & CENTRAL ASIA



"ETHNIC CLEANSING" IN TAJIKISTAN? SANGAK SAFAROV, THE MOST PROMINENT
PRO- COMMUNIST MILITARY COMMANDER DURING THE TAJIK CIVIL WAR,
WAS QUOTED ON 18 JANUARY BY ITAR-TASS AS TELLING THE WEEKLY BIZNES
I POLITIKA THAT TALES OF "ETHNIC CLEANSING" IN SOUTHERN TAJIKISTAN
ARE FALSE RUMORS SPREAD BY THE OPPOSITION. Safarov, who styles
himself "Chairman of the Popular Front of Tajikistan," a group
that seems to have grown out of pro-Communist military formations
in Kulyab Oblast, has become famous for his intolerant attitude
toward the nationalist-democratic and Islamic forces in the country.
In the interview he claimed to be fighting only Islamic fundamentalists,
but many Tajik anti- Communists believe that Safarov's definition
of this term encompasses all opposition sympathizers. Bess Brown


AKAEV TO ISRAEL. Kyrgyzstan's President Askar Akaev began an
official visit to Israel on 18 January. Kyrgyz Foreign Minister
Ednan Karabaev told Interfax that Akaev's delegation will present
a package of agreements on trade and economic, cultural and scientific
cooperation to the Israeli government. Kyrgyzstan is particularly
interested in Israeli help with agricultural projects such as
drip irrigation, dairy cattle breeding and food processing. Just
before his departure for Israel Akaev announced that development
of agriculture will have top priority in 1993. Interfax speculated
that Israel may see Kyrgyzstan as a source of rare metals. Bess
Brown

CENTRAL AND EASTERN EUROPE



BOSNIA CROAT-MUSLIM CLASHES INTENSIFY. Clashes between units
of the Croatian Defense Council (HVO) and the Muslim Bosnian
army are spreading in central Bosnia. According to Radio Croatia
on 18 January, some Muslim units ignored a Croatian ultimatum
to withdraw from Gornji Vakuf and shelling has intensified. Both
sides have exchanged fire in other towns in central Bosnia. Croatian
sources say Muslims are stepping up the attacks because they
do not recognize the area as a Croatian province that was drawn
up by international mediators. Commanders on both sides are trying
to end the fighting which they describe as "negative and unnecessary."
Croatia's President Franjo Tudjman told reporters in Zagreb that
Muslim leaders want to fight the war to the end, while Croatia
is oriented towards peace and emphasized "different political
orientations" between Croats and Muslims. Bosnian President Alija
Izetbegovic told Radio Bosnia that Muslims and Croats have lived
together for hundreds of years and accused "some hotheads in
the HVO" for wanting to start the conflict. Milan Andrejevich


BOSNIAN SERBS SET TO VOTE ON PEACE PLAN. The 80-member assembly
of the self-proclaimed Serb Republic in Bosnia-Herzegovina will
meet on 19 January in Pale near Sarajevo to decide whether to
accept an internationally-mediated peace plan. Radio Serbia reported
on 18 January that it is likely the plan will "barely win approval."
The main opponents come from representatives in the Banja Luka
area led by assembly president Momcilo Krajisnik. Initially opposed
to the plan, Krajisnik told Radio Serbia on 17 January that the
time has come to realize that "creating a greater Serbia cannot
be accomplished by military force only." Bosnian Serb leader
Radovan Karadzic has accepted the plan in principle and says
he will resign as President of the Serb Republic if the plan
is rejected. The peace plan divides Bosnia into ten provinces
along economic, geographic, and ethnic lines but retains a central
government. Serbs seek a separate state, which the plan does
not allow. Leaders in Serbia are urging the Bosnian Serbs to
accept the plan. Milan Andrejevich

TUDJMAN CONSIDERING EXTENSION OF UN MANDATE. Croatian President
Franjo Tudjman said on 18 January that he is considering an extension
of the UNPROFOR mandate in Croatia for a few more months--"provided
that it will begin to carry out its tasks effectively." The mandate
expires at the end of February. Tudjman previously accused the
UN of failing to carry out its mission and had said he would
not agree to an extension. He reiterated his charge that UN forces
have failed to disarm Serb forces and warned that Croatia will
no longer tolerate the occupation of a part of its territory
by rebel Serbs. Radio Croatia carried the report. Milan Andrejevich


CZECH-SLOVAK CUSTOMS UNION COUNCIL MEETS. At its first meeting
in Bratislava on 18 January, the joint Czech-Slovak Customs Union
council urged Czech and Slovak authorities to simplify procedures
for customs posts and border crossings. CTK reports that Czech
and Slovak representatives signed an agreement allowing the council
to coordinate the two countries' trade and customs policies and
represent them in negotiations with third countries. Czech Economy
Minister Vladimir Dlouhy was elected chairman of the council
for the next six months. The establishment of the council is
part of an agreement on the Czech-Slovak Customs Union signed
by Czech and Slovak leaders before the split of Czechoslovakia.
Jiri Pehe

CZECH PREMIER ON A VISIT TO GERMANY. Vaclav Klaus arrived in
Frankfurt on 18-January for a meeting with Bundesbank Chairman
Helmut Schlesinger. CTK reported that Klaus and Schlesinger are
expected to focus on problems of Czech foreign exchange reserves
and the split of Czechoslovakia. Before meeting Schlesinger,
Klaus talked by phone with German Chancellor Helmut Kohl. The
two prime ministers discussed political and economic matters,
including the issue of Czech foreign exchange reserves. Klaus
also met in DŸsseldorf with Johannes Rau, prime minister of North
Rhine- Westphalia, to discuss industrial policy and environmental
cooperation. Jiri Pehe

POLISH ECONOMIC ROUNDUP. Krzysztof Krowacki, the newly appointed
negotiator for Poland's debts to Western commercial banks, which
total $12 billion, announced on 18-January that Poland will reduce
its interest payments on short-term revolving credits to 20%
as of 4 February. This move seems intended to induce the London
Club to treat all of Poland's commercial debt as a single package
and to offer reductions according to the principles agreed upon
in 1991 with the Paris Club of government creditors. In other
economic news, the Warsaw stock exchange index reached its highest
level ever on 18-January. The Finance Ministry announced that
tax forms and instructions for Poland's first year of income
tax are in the mail. Industry Minister Waclaw Niewiarowski told
reporters on his return to Poland on 18 January that Pakistan
is prepared to conclude a major deal to purchase Polish armaments
(believed to include T-82 tanks). Finally, former Deputy Prime
Minister Leszek Balcerowicz told Radio Zet on 19 January that
fiscal stability is possible only if the Sejm approves a deficit
ceiling at or below the level proposed by the government. Louisa
Vinton

SKUBISZEWSKI PROMOTES REGIONAL COOPERATION. On a visit to Paris
to mark the 30th anniversary of the signing of a German-French
friendship treaty, Polish Foreign Minister Krzysztof Skubiszewski
on 18 January hailed the German-French reconciliation as an historic
precedent. He urged that Poland be gradually included in the
French-German "zone of cooperation." Skubiszewski added that
current German-French cooperation efforts provide a good example
for the four countries of the Visegrad regional arrangement.
A visit to France by Prime Minister Hanna Suchocka had also been
scheduled for the same day but its postponement was announced
on 15 January. Louisa Vinton

HUNGARIAN DEMOCRATIC FORUM PREPARES FOR CONGRESS. The 16-member
"strategic work group" of the Hungarian Democratic Forum, comprising
members of the national presidium and steering committee as well
as the government, is preparing materials for discussion at the
upcoming national congress, MTI reported on 18 January. The subjects
include party strategy in 1993 and 1994, the HDF's three wings,
European integration, carrying out the change of regime, and
social problems. Minister of Industry and Trade Ivan Szabo said
that the HDF seeks to change its image at home and abroad and
make clear that it is a moderate middle-of-the-road party. HDF
presidium member Istvan Csurka and several county party organizations
criticized plans to begin the congress with leadership elections
if candidates are given no chance to present their programs.
Csurka said that such a procedure would turn the elections into
"a mere formality" and ensure the reelection of current chairman
Prime Minister Jozsef Antall. Csurka said that this is the reason
he withdrew his candidacy for the post of chairman, and warned
of the "danger of political rigidity" if the congress reelects
Antall in a show of solidarity without prior debate. Edith Oltay


HUNGARIAN-ROMANIAN TALKS. Returning from a trip to Romania where
he attended the national congress of the Hungarian Democratic
Federation of Romania, State Secretary Gyula Kodolanyi termed
his talks with Romanian government and opposition figures "very
successful," according to MTI of 18 January. Kodolanyi expressed
satisfaction that Romanian government figures have agreed to
meet with Geza Entz, the head of the Office for Hungarians Abroad,.
who has until now been treated in a rather hostile manner in
government circles. Kodolanyi said that the Romanian side is
also interested in improving Hungarian-Romanian relations and
suggested that a new round of official talks begin. Edith Oltay


ROMANIAN PREMIER SEES END OF ECONOMIC DECLINE. Nicolae Vacaroiu
said on 18-January that the country's current economic recession
could end within six months. Speaking to reporters, Vacaroiu
expressed hopes that a steep decline in production over the last
three years can be stopped in the first half of 1993. He singled
out domestic production of tractors and farm equipment as well
as metallurgy as sectors where significant growth can be achieved
in the near future. The prime minister rejected opposition criticism
that his minority government dominated by the leftist Democratic
National Salvation Front was trying to put the brakes on economic
reforms. Vacaroiu's cabinet is due to present its four- year
plan for economic and tax reforms to Parliament soon. Dan Ionescu


BULGARIA TO RESTRICT "TRANSIT EMIGRATION." Airlines that bring
foreigners without proper travel documents into Bulgaria will
be fined (roughly $2,000) and held responsible for returning
them home, Reuters reported on 18 January. Explaining the measure,
which went into effect on the 19th, Bulgarian officials said
it is an attempt to limit the flow of illegal immigrants arriving
from Africa and Asia. At present there are over 15,000 illegal
immigrants in Bulgaria, most of whom have been seeking to reach
the West. Kjell Engelbrekt

KRAVCHUK ON THE CIS. Ukrainian President Leonid Kravchuk told
a press conference in Kiev on 18 January that the draft CIS charter
does not serve the interests of Ukraine and that from the legal
standpoint it cannot be signed, Radio Ukraine reports. Kravchuk
emphasized that the charter is not about improving the situation
in the CIS but rather a political issue that is being exploited
by certain political forces. He also told journalists that Ukraine
will propose an economic agreement at the forthcoming CIS summit
in Minsk. Roman Solchanyk

PRO-NUCLEAR DEMONSTRATION IN KIEV. "Many thousands" reportedly
participated in a demonstration organized in Kiev on 18 January
demanding that Ukraine leave the CIS and that it retain a nuclear
capability, ITAR-TASS reports. The demonstration was called to
protest attempts by former communists in the parliament to convene
an extraordinary session of the parliament that would consider
the legalization of the Communist Party and mobilize support
for Ukraine's adherence to the CIS charter. Roman Solchanyk

UKRAINIAN COMMUNISTS CONTINUE ORGANIZING. Despite the continuing
ban of the Communist Party in Ukraine, communists are continuing
to regroup. New attempts to revive the CPU were made last weekend
at meetings in Odessa and Luhansk, Ukrainian media report. President
Leonid Kravchuk confirmed at a press conference on 18 January
that a communist faction has begun collecting signatures among
parliamentary deputies calling for the ban on the CPU to be lifted.
That same day Ukrainian TV reported that several thousand demonstrators
opposed to the legalization of the CPU picketed the parliament
building and called for the CPU to be put on trial. Bohdan Nahaylo


MOLDOVAN-UKRAINIAN MILITARY COOPERATION AGREEMENT. On 18 January
in Chisinau Moldovan Defense Minister Pavel Creanga and Ukrainian
First Deputy Defense Minister Ivan Bizhan initialed an agreement
that provides for the creation of a common air defense system,
exchanges of military information of joint interest, and exchanges
of military specialists. According to Basapress, the military
agreement was drawn up on the basis of the basic treaty signed
by Presidents Mircea Snegur and Leonid Kravchuk on 23-October
1992. Vladimir Socor

LEBED TURNING AGAINST "DNIESTER" LEADERSHIP. Lt.-Gen. Aleksandr
Lebed, commander of Russia's 14th Army in Moldova, warned allegedly
corrupt "Dniester republic" leaders at a news conference in Tiraspol
that he is "sick and tired guarding the sleep and safety of crooks,"
according to Nezavisimaya gazeta of 14 January. The newspaper
reported from Tiraspol that the army command is currently seeking
to force out "Dniester republic" internal affairs and security
officials believed to collude in the leadership's reported corrupt
and criminal activities. The newspaper cited local observers
on the possibility of a military move to replace Igor Smirnov's
compromised group at the head of the self-proclaimed republic.
While Lebed's warnings have become more frequent recently, his
statements also indicate undiminished support for the "Dniester
republic" as such. Vladimir Socor

LITHUANIA'S NEGOTIATIONS WITH RUSSIA. At a press conference on
15 January Ceslovas Stankevicius, head of the Lithuanian state
delegation negotiating with Russia, noted that Russia has essentially
changed its stance, BNS reports. Russia has decided to take a
"pause" in the talks until "Lithuania changes the composition
of its delegation and its position" by agreeing with Russian
demands "to accord legal status" to the Russian military personnel
in the republic, endow them with civil and political rights,
and agree with Russian property claims. Stankevicius added that
Russia has begun to communicate via Ricardas Degutis, Lithuanian
representative in Moscow, rather than with the official negotiating
team. Saulius Girnius

LATVIAN-RUSSIAN TALKS RESUME. Troop withdrawal talks resume on
19 January in Jurmala, despite the fact that there has been no
retraction of President Yeltsin's decision of 29 October 1992
to suspend the troop withdrawals from the Baltic States. On the
eve of the talks the Russian side claimed that it has only 16,174
troops stationed in Latvia, while the Latvian side estimates
the number at 27,000. Disagreement also remains in the count
of military hardware in Latvia as well as over the handover of
the Biryuzov Military Academy in Riga to Latvia, Diena reported
on 15 and 18 January. Dzintra Bungs

LAAR VISITS PALDISKI. After his visit to the Russian naval base
at Paldiski on 18 January, Estonian Prime Minister Mart Laar
told reporters that Moscow's claims of secrecy at the base are
only an excuse to delay the withdrawal of troops based there.
Laar said that his talks with officers and others at the base
as well as personal observations make it clear that the troops
are prepared to leave Paldsiki as soon as they are ordered to
do so. During the latest round of Estonian-Russian talks held
last weekend near Moscow, Adm. Feliks Gromov, Russia's delegation
chief for the military withdrawal basket of the talks, told Estonian
chief negotiator Juri Luik that Russia will not allow international
atomic energy inspectors to visit Paldiski because of Russian
military secrets. Riina Kionka

TANKER SPILL IN ESTONIA. A heavy storm raging in the Gulf of
Finland is hampering efforts to rescue the crew of a grounded
oil tanker and contain an oil spill off the coast of Estonia.
According to Hommikuleht, the oil tanker Kihnu ran aground four
kilometers from Tallinn harbor on 16 January, spilling 30-40
tons of oil. Local authorities fear the ship will break apart,
spilling even more oil. Finland has dispatched a specially equipped
ship to help clean up the spill, but its arrival has been delayed
by the storm. The Kihnu was reportedly still in one piece on
the morning of 19 January. Riina Kionka

BRAZAUSKAS FORMALLY REGISTERED AS CANDIDATE FOR PRESIDENT. On
17-January Vaclovas Litvinas, the head of the Lithuanian presidential
election commission, officially registered Lithuanian Democratic
party chairman Algirdas Brazauskas as a candidate for the elections
to be held on 14 February, BNS reports. While 20,000 signatures
of eligible voters supporting his candidacy were required, over
40,000 were presented, but about a fourth of them were declared
invalid. On 18 January Republican Party Chairman Kazimieras Petraitis
officially withdrew. The other five candidates who have been
nominated have until midnight 20 January to present the 20,000
signatures to be registered. Saulius Girnius

LATVIAN FOOD INDUSTRY DECREASES OUTPUT. BNS reported on 18 January
that production by Latvia's food industry declined in 1992 as
compared with the output in 1991. In 1992 the output of dairy
products declined by 12%, meat by 15%, and eggs by 20%. The yield
of milk per cow was 2,549 kg, or a decrease of 19%. In 1992,
Latvia produced 1,530 million tons of milk, 367,000 tons of meat,
and 609 million eggs. Dzintra Bungs

[As of 1200 CET] Compiled by Hal Kosiba & Charles Trumbull